Please, No More Soulmates!
by FanOfGames16
Summary: Finding your soulmate is a great thing, right? Well, after your twentieth soulmate...
1. Chapter 1

He hesitantly offered his hand to the girl lying on the ground. "Hey... I'm Jaune."

The girl smiled. "Ruby." She took his hand.

That was when pink spiritual handcuffs slapped themselves over their wrists.

Ruby stared in shock before she gasped with delight. "Oh my gosh, you're my soulmate!" She gasped again, but in horror. "Oh my gosh, you're my soulmate! What will Yang say? What will Uncle Qrow do? Oh, Dad is going to be furious!"

While she was rambling, Jaune mentally groaned in frustration. '_Knew I shouldn't have done that._'

"Oh, none of that matters! We're soulmates!" She grabbed his hands and got real close. "Do you like cookies and/or strawberries? What's your opinion on weapons, specifically scythes and sniper rifles? Can I see your weapon, please?!"

_'Curse my sense of sympathy._'

"Wait, do that later. We have to find where everyone else went quick. Come on!" Ruby held onto his hands and ran with her Speed Semblance.

'_Urgh, I think I'm going to puke again._'

* * *

"Yang, guess what! I found my soulmate!" Ruby showed off the transparent pink handcuffs attached to her wrist.

Yang blinked in confusion and shock. This was the last thing she expected to hear when she waved her sister over. She looked over the boy, who was staring at the ground and sounded quite sick. Wait, sick? "Hey," Yang growled in realization. "You were the one who puked over my shoes!"

Jaune looked up to her. "Sorry, motion sickness."

**Clang!**

Yang looked at her wrist. Pink handcuffs. And the chain was connected to the boy's own handcuffed wrist. She grumbled. "Well, I guess I can forgive my soulmate. But just this once."

"Hey, no fair! He's my soulmate!" Ruby objected. "I saw him first! Stop trying to steal him away already!"

"Sis, I don't make the rules." Yang looked to the boy again, who was blankly staring at his wrist. She couldn't blame him. Still, this was a golden opportunity. "Hope you're fine with us sharing, 'cause you're getting a two-for-one sister package deal."

Jaune gave her a blank stare. "Uh huh. Sure."

"Hey, act more excited." Yang playfully patted his cheek. "We're not that bad."

"Aw man, today's just full of ups and downs," Ruby complained. "Get into Beacon, explode in the first two minutes. Find my soulmate, then my sister takes my soulmate! Can't I just get something nice without something bad happening?"

Yang held up a hand. "First of all, I didn't take him. We're sharing now. Second, what was that about you exploding?"

"You!" Ruby, Yang, and Jaune turned to see a white-haired girl stomping towards them.

"Protect me!" The blonde sister held her arms out, but blinked when Ruby instead jumped into her/their soulmate's embrace. "Ouch..." Yang figured Jaune had the same idea as her when he didn't even make the attempt to catch her. Yang watched as this new girl berated her sister about her apparent explosion. She finally stepped in when Ruby got a pamphlet shoved in her face.

"Look, uh, it sounds like you two just got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you start over and try to be friends, okay?"

"Great idea, sis!" Ruby cleared her throat. "Hello, Weiss! I'm Ruby! Wanna hang out? We can go shopping for school supplies!"

"Yeah!" Weiss said with obviously fake enthusiasm. "And we can paint our nails and try on clothes and talk about cute boys, like tall, blonde, and scraggly over there!" She pointed at Jaune.

"Okay, a maybe to the nails and clothes, but he's off limits!" Ruby hugged Jaune and showed off her handcuffs. "This is my soulmate."

Weiss blinked in shock. This young dunce had a soulmate? She took a good second look at him. Tall, blonde, and scraggly, indeed he was. In terms of appearance, he looked fairly average. What caught her attention though was the look on his face. He looked resigned, so done with everything. His eyes looked like they were begging for anyone to put him out of his misery.

"My soulmate too, by the way." The other blonde said as she too displayed her handcuffs attached to the blonde boy.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce them to you too. This is my sister Yang, and my soulmate's name is Jaune."

"Our soulmate."

Oh wow. Two soulmates? With one being that exploding dunderhead and the other with her sister who looked like a harlot? No wonder this Jaune looked so defeated. He must've spent years with those two, getting caught in their shenanigans. Weiss gave him the most understanding of looks. "You have my sympathies."

Jaune groaned. "Of course." Huh? What did he mean by that? And did someone touch her hand just now?

"NO! You can't be soulmates too!" Soulmates? She looked at her wrist. Pink handcuffs. The chains leading to... Jaune. "You're not stealing him away! Yang was enough!" Ruby exclaimed.

"We're sharing sis."

Jaune interjected softly, "I didn't agree to that."

Weiss could only stare in shock. Her soulmate... had two other soulmates! Harems were extremely rare. Very few ever formed in Remnant's soulmate history. She didn't think that someone like her, the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, would ever get involved in one. Was it too late to back out? Weiss looked at her apparent soulmate once more. His despaired face conveyed it all to her. No, she couldn't abandon her soulmate, even if this relationship would become a polygamous one! The only thing left to do was beat those two girls. '_Just because they saw him first, doesn't mean they're his number one! I'll show Jaune I'm better than this child and her hussy sister!_'

A cough was heard through the auditorium. The four teens and everyone else in the room turned their attention to Headmaster Ozpin, standing in front of the microphone, with Professor Goodwitch by his side. "I'll... keep this brief," Ozpin said as he and Goodwitch scanned each face in the room. "You-" Two pink chains shot out and hit a single figure. The Headmaster stared at the boy with two new chains. "-shall come to my office after initiation." With that, he made his leave. Goodwitch could handle the rest as soon as she was done choking on air.

Jaune facepalmed. Ruby, Yang, and Weiss felt their souls leaving their bodies. '_The Headmaster and Goodwitch too!?_'

**Later that night...**

The boy stepped out of the bathroom, revealing his blue onesie and bunny slippers. Naturally, one passerby in the boy's locker room couldn't help but remark. "Nice outfit dork."

**Clang!**

"Thanks," Jaune said dryly as he walked passed another one of his soulmates.

Jaune heard a guy cheering up the flabbergasted teen, "Congrats Cardin! Wait, isn't that the guy who's soulmates with Ozpin and Goodwitch?" Ignoring the rest of the conversation, Jaune got his sleeping bag and made his way to the ballroom. Luckily, he found an empty spot in the middle. He put his bag down, slid himself inside, and closed his eyes, welcoming sleep's embra-

"Hey Jaune! I hope you don't mind if I sleep here with you." Jaune opened his eyes to see Ruby lying down on her own sleeping bag and she was awfully close to his left side.

Before he could retort, he felt another person on his right. "I apologize Jaune, but I'm ashamed to say I couldn't prevent Ruby and Yang from intruding upon you tonight."

The last one made her presence near his head and "whispered" into his ear, "She caved in when I let her have my spot at your arm."

With a flushed face, Weiss slapped her hand over Yang's mouth. "Shut up! Don't tell him that!"

'_Urgh, the sooner I fall asleep, the better._' He closed his eyes once more and tried to relax. Quite difficult when Yang was playing with his hair while Ruby and Weiss got as close as possible to him.

Ruby whined, "Aw, you're going to sleep already? I wanted to talk some more."

"You should follow his example," Weiss said with a huff. "Or don't. It makes no difference to me whether you're ready. I intend to be fully prepared for tomorrow."

"Hey, is that a onesie you're wearing?" Yang rhetorically asked with a teasing smile as she took a peak inside his sleeping bag. "You know, if you get hot, you can always take it off to cool down. I'll even help if you ask nicely."

Ruby chided, "Don't be gross Yang!"

"Absolutely not!" Weiss growled while sporting a blush. "I won't allow you to harass Jaune like that!"

"Make such suggestions again and I'll forbid you from taking Initiation, Miss Xiao Long."

"Wait," said a confused Ruby. "Why are you here Professor Goodwitch?"

The professor placed a sleeping bag next to them. "To prevent anyone in this... harem from engaging in any elicit activities. Clearly I'm needed."

'_She just wants to be close to him_,' the girls thought jealously.

'_Oh good. Just what I needed_,' Jaune mentally snarked. It was bad enough with the sleeping bag triangle. Now he was boxed in from all sides, with Goodwitch at his legs. '_I can't sleep like this_.'

"Wait Jaune, where are you going?"

"Jaune, don't leave me because of this filthy girl's mouth!"

"Hey Lover Boy, I was just kidding!"

"Does he... not like older women?"

Jaune dumped his sleeping bag next to a random person. "Mind if I sleep here?"

Said person stopped furiously writing in her notebook to answer in monotone (despite her red face), "Yes actually."

Jaune blinked. "Oh. Okay, sorry to bother you."

**Clang!**

"...Okay, you can stay. I'm Blake, by th- Hey, where are you going?"

_'Forget this place. I'll just find a janitor's closet or something._'

* * *

**Mwah! Mwah! Mwah! ****Mwah! Mwah! Mwah!**** Mwah! Mwah! Mwah!**

**Mwah! Mwah! Mwa- Beep!**

His kissing alarm would always be annoying. He forced himself out of the janitor's closet and performed his morning duties. He ignored the hyperactive ginger and her black haired (with a single pink strand) friend, who appeared quite dead on the inside, as they too got dressed, brushed their teeth, ate breakfast, and went to the weapons locker room for Initiation.

Meanwhile, Weiss was staring at Pyrrha Nikos. Yes, THE Pyrrha Nikos. Four time Mistral Regions Tournament winner in a row. Top of her class at Sanctum Academy. Had her face on the box of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes cereal box! When Weiss heard that she was attending Beacon Academy, she was giddy. With Pyrrha by her side, they could become unstoppable school celebrities, unrivaled in grades and combat! It was the perfect plan!

'_But teams are made up of four people, and no doubt that little milk carton and cow are going to team up with my Jaune. I can't leave him alone with those unruly sisters! Forgive me Pyrrha. Our brilliant future is but a fading dream now. Please understand. I must look out for my soulmate's, Jaune Schnee's, best interests._'

"Excuse me, can I help you?" Huh? "You've been staring at me for quite some time now," Pyrrha said with a nervous smile.

"Oh, my apologies!" Weiss bowed her head. "I was just... thinking what could've been."

"Excuse me?" Where's a distraction when you needed one?

She felt a bump from her side. "Oh. Sorry."

"Jaune!?" Weiss turned to him cheerfully. "Were you looking for me?"

"Actually, I was-"

"Did you see Ruby and Yang first?"

"Well, no, but I-"

Weiss didn't listen to the rest, for she sported a victorious smirk and gloated mentally, '_Hah! Take that little girl and big-boobed blonde bimbo! This proves Jaune prefers me over you!_'

By the look on her face, Jaune could clearly see he lost her.

"Um, is she alright?" Weiss snapped out of it and both she and Jaune focused on Pyrrha.

"Apologies. I was lost in thought."

'_Clearly,_' Jaune thought dryly.

"Anyway, I like to introduce my soulmate. This here is Jaune."

'_Oh crap, better leave while I can._'

"Jaune, this is Pyrrha Nikos."

He was already walking away. "I don't care."

**Clang!**

'_Damn, I was too careless._'

As Weiss stared with an open jaw, Pyrrha took a look at her transparent pink handcuffs. She looked back to Jaune. Pyrrha narrowed her eyes and smiled. _'I must make him mine!_'

* * *

While he was hurled into the Emerald Forest, Jaune had clasped his hands together and closed his eyes, silently praying to any merciful deity watching him that he would not be partnered up with any soulmat-

He suddenly found himself speared to a tree. The javelin stuck in his hoodie looked exactly like the one that Nikos girl had on her back when they were in the locker rooms. "Guess she's one of those girls." Jaune took hold of and removed the javelin from his hood. Once he safely landed, he stabbed the weapon into the grass and immediately ran away from the area. He stopped after a solid thirty seconds of running. He found himself in a grassy field. Jaune crossed his arms and laid out his options. "Ruby, Yang, Weiss, the girl with the bow on her head, Cardin, and Nikos. They are definite no's. Are there any safe options? Hmm... No. Damn. I really hate this partner system."

_Hiss!_

"Look out!"

Jaune quickly dodged to the side, the white head of the King Taijitu barely missing him. Jaune unsheathed his sword just as the snake came back to him, jaws wide open. The very moment before it could take a bite of him, Jaune jumped as high as he could and aimed his sword downward. The blade easily stabbed straight into the snake's skin when he landed. Wasting no time, he gripped tightly onto his sword and ran along the body. He ran all the way from the King Taijutu's white snake to the black one and upon reaching the black head, Jaune retracted his sword from the body and stabbed the snake's red eye. The Grimm writhed and swung its head to fling him off to no avail.

"Jump off! I'll finish it!" Jaune listened to the voice and leaped off in time to watch a boy his age deliver a palm strike directly in the middle of the snake's head, causing it to explode. Which caused the upper part of its black body to split in half. At the death of its conjoined twin, the white snake retaliated against the two.

It met a similar fate.

Jaune sheathed his sword. He turned to his ally. It was the same black-haired boy with the single pink strand from this morning. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." The boy suddenly raised his eyebrows in realization. "It seems we're partners. My name is Lie Ren."

"Jaune Arc."

There was the familiar sound of metal.

Ren looked at his new handcuff. He bowed to his new soulmate. "I'll be in your care."

Jaune groaned. "Let's just go find those Relics."

The two walked in silence through the Emerald Forest. Ren walked while cupping his chin in thought. '_Should I practice the mitsuyubi pose? Is that too formal? How about "Dinner, bath or... me?" No. That should be reserved for when we get closer. I wonder what Jaune likes._'

'_At least this guy's quiet and not pestering me. That's one upside. Yeah, one upside to a million downsides. Ugh, the day basically started and I already want it to end. We better find those Relics soon._'

"Those appear to be the Relics." Convenient. "Two people there as well." Well, as long as they weren't anyone he knew.

THUD!

"Alright, it was you Lover Boy! Miss me?"

Dammit.

"Get off him Yang!" The weight disappeared from his shoulders. "Are you okay?" He turned to his savior.

Oh. The random girl with the notebook. Just. Great. "Hey, what gives Blake?" Yang frowned at her partner. "I was just cuddling up to my soulmate. Nothing wrong with that, right?"

In response, Blake brandished her handcuffs. "He's my soulmate too."

"Mine as well." Both girls turned to Ren, the boy showing off his own handcuff.

Blake's face went red. '_Headmaster and this new boy!? I need to write this down later!_'

Yang thought in intrigue, '_Ruby, myself, Weiss, Professor Ozpin, Goodwitch, Blake, and him. Man, when we're all older, I can already picture us having a huge org-_'

"Heads up!" At once, each of the teens looked upwards to see a flailing Ruby falling from the sky. "Hey, someone catch me already!" Since he'd rather not get covered in blood from the impact, but not wanting to catch her either, Jaune instead focused on Ruby and subtlety used his Semblance. "Augh! Ow gosh that- actually didn't hurt at all." The girl picked herself up. "Guess I'm tougher than I thought."

Dumbfounded, Blake asked her partner, "Did your sister just fall from the sky?"

"And came out of that unscathed?" Ren added.

"I-"

The sound of growling and trees falling grabbed their attention. Emerging from the woods was an Ursa... which soon dropped dead. "He's here somewhere. I know it." The girl riding the Ursa retrieved her weapon lodged in the Grimm's neck and got off her ride. "Help me keep looking Nora."

Her orange-haired partner jumped off the dead Grimm bear. "You got it!" She then muttered under her breath, "Crazy."

"What was that?"

"Oh nothing, just wondering who those friendly looking guys are." Wait a second. "Ren!"

"Jaune!" The two eagerly rushed towards the boys.

Ren allowed himself to be hugged. Pyrrha did not notice that she ended up hugging a different blonde. '_Well, that'll buy me a couple seconds. I should get a Relic in the meantime._'

"Someone get this crazy girl off me!"

The girl spun Ren around. "Hey best buddy!"

"Hello Nora," the boy said, not at all bothered.

"So what adventure did you get up to while I was gone? Because I had an adventure of my own! I was surrounded by Ursai, dozens of them, and just when I was about to lay the smack down on them, my partner, Pyrrha over there, jumped in, screaming her head off and cut off almost all of their heads, and then she hitched a ride on one of them, and then I hitched a ride too, we introduced ourselves, the Ursa became broken, I saw everyone, and now we're here!"

"That's nice."

"Yep! So what were you doing?"

"I found my soulmate."

Nora froze and gasped in excitement. "No way! That's awesome. Who are they? Who's the one who's your destined life partner?"

"Over there."

She turned around and gasped once more. "The white girl falling from the sky?" Ren grabbed her head and turned it. "Oh that guy. He's cute I guess." She gave Ren an enthusiastic grin. "Can I help teach you your "wifely duties," or husband in this case?"

"You can watch me practice."

"Only if you make me pancakes."

"Sure."

Nora clenched her fist in triumph. "Yes!"

"Hey, if you two are done," the two turned to Yang, who was busy helping the others against a giant Nevermore. "We could use some help!"

"Aw yeah, smashing time!" Nora unleashed her grenade launcher.

Weiss, who also had a safe landing earlier, interjected, "No. There's no point in wasting time fighting. Our objective is right in front of us."

"She's right," Ruby agreed. "Our mission is to grab one of these Relics, and head back to the cliffs."

"Then let's get going," Jaune joined. "Anyone who hasn't taken one yet," Jaune held up his chess piece Relic. "Do so now."

"Wait Jaune, is that a white rook?"

He hesitantly answered to Weiss, "Yeah?"

"Ruby, get the same piece as him!"

"Oh, good idea." Before she could go, a hand grabbed Ruby's cloak. "Ouch!"

Yang smirked. "No way sis. If anyone's getting a matching piece with Jaune, it's gonna be and my partner. Right Blake?" The disguised cat faunus immediately agreed by holding onto one of Jaune's arms and giving a deadly glare to the others.

"As if I'll allow a wench like you to match Jaune," Weiss shot. '_Ruby is bad enough._'

"Well, that's mean. Aren't we soul sisters?"

"Don't remind me."

"I do apologize," Pyrrha said with an insincere smile. She showed off her chess piece while gripping tightly on her weapon. "But I already claimed this piece."

Ruby whined. "Argh, no fair! I want that piece!"

"Pyrrha, I have the upmost respect for you," Weiss said diplomatically. "But I must ask that you relinquish that rook."

Yang cracked her knuckles. "Not if I take it from you."

Blake nodded along and readied herself with Gambol Shroud as she thought, '_Hmm, Pyrrha Nikos is giving off a obsessive lover vibe. Schnee and Yang are showing signs, but not quite there yet. Just mere signs of jealousy._'

Ren stared at the five girls in thought. '_I can already tell that being with them will be quite troublesome. At least they'll be less chaotic than Nora._'

'_What's up with them? Why do they want to be with Ren's soulmate. Wait, are they all his soulmates too? Wow, never thought I'd see that. Hey, wait a second. That guy! Aren't Ozpin and Goodwitch his soulmates? Is Ren in a harem?_'

"Can you all please get a chess piece already!?" Jaune yelled in exasperation as he pointed up. "That Nevermore is still on us!"

Ruby ceased her pouting. "Oh right." She quickly ran to the one of the altars, grabbed a white knight piece, and came back. "Alright, let's go!"

Jaune pointed in the direction of their goal and ran ahead. "This way!" The remaining seven teens followed after him. Eventually, they reached a ruins area, but the Nevermore that had been chasing them was already there, waiting for its prey. Jaune hid behind a stone pillar and he narrowed his eyes at the Grimm. He turned to his side, finding his partner and the six others hiding in the same spot as him. '_Really?_' Jaune sighed and addressed them all, "What are your weapons, Semblances, and other abilities you have?" As the group informed him, the Nevermore waited, its eyes trained on the hiding humans. It had decided to wait for them to appear. It waited. It waited some more.

Its patience broken, it gave a screech and blasted its sharp feathers at them. The pillar broke apart, but the group already ran out and scattered. Nora aimed her grenade launcher at the oversized bird and fired. The grenade exploded right in the Nevermore's face. Sustaining damage, it made to retreat. However, it soon met blade slashes on its skin, for Blake had flung Pyrrha with the ribbon attached to Gambol Shroud and Weiss launched Ruby with her Glyphs. Both Pyrrha and Ruby stabbed their weapons Milo and Crescent Rose into the back of the Nevermore's neck. The Grimm shook, turned, and spun, but the two held on and unsteadily veered the bird to a nearby pillar. As they reached it, Ruby and Pyrrha removed their weapons and jumped back onto land, and Yang and Ren leaped up to take their place. Yang threw her hardest punch with her shotgun gauntlets and Ren threw an Aura palm thrust at the back of the bird's head. The combined attack shot the Nevermore straight to the ground. The two safely jumped off and the bird fell right to where Jaune stood, his sword glowing with Aura. When the Nevermore got close, he jumped and swung. His sword easily decapitated the Grimm.

The corpse started to smoke and dissolve, but Jaune didn't care. He simply sheathed his sword and made his way to where the cliffs were, ignoring his soulmates who had rushed to him and praised his plan for working. '_Can this day end already?_'

* * *

"Jaune Arc. Lie Ren. Pyrrha Nikos. Nora Valkyrie. Blake Belladonna. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Yang Xiao Long," Ozpin listed off to the eight in front of him and to the other soon-to-be Beacon students in the auditorium. "Normally, you would be two teams of four, with the people you collected matching Relics with." At that, Pyrrha shot Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang a smug look, the four instantly feeling annoyed. "However, seeing your performance in the Emerald Forest and acknowledging Mr. Arc's soulmate situation, I've instead decided that you eight shall form a single team." At this, Jaune mentally groaned while the others had satisfied faces, although Pyrrha's was slightly strained. "From this day forward, you will work together as JWNPRBRY. Lead by Jaune Arc."

Nora cheered, "Alright Fearless Leader!"

"Good job Jaune!" Ruby congratulated with a hug.

Yang winked. "Nice Lover Boy."

"I'd expect nothing less," Weiss commented with pride.

Blake smiled at her leader. "Well done."

"Congratulations!" Pyrrha said as she clung to his arm after seeing what Ruby did.

Ren bowed. "I'll follow you always."

_'Seriously, knock it off.'_

"Now," Ozpin got their attention. He gestured to his assistant standing nearby. "Miss Goodwitch here shall lead you all to your dorm room. Jaune Arc, as I said yesterday, follow me to my office."

'_No! He's probably going to do things to him in private!_' Pyrrha internally raged.

'_Ooh! He's probably going to do things to him in private!_' Blake thought with a blush.

Jaune dully followed the Headmaster as Goodwitch escorted his team to their room. The two walked in silence out of the auditorium, through hallways, and got inside an elevator. They soon arrived at his office. Jaune stepped out and observed the simple room with rotating clockwork gears at the ceiling. "You may be wondering why I brought you here," Ozpin ventured as he fiddled with the Scroll on his desk.

"A bit."

"Well, I wanted to introduce you to someone."

"That's all?" Jaune asked with a frown.

"It's more important than you realize." Ozpin stood back and to Jaune's side. The teen looked at the scroll on the desk, which was making a call. The person on the other line answered.

"I never thought you would call."

"As did I," Ozpin replied.

"What is your business? And who is that boy with you?"

**Clang!**

Ozpin smiled. "He's our soulmate."

"...Well, I think this calls for a truce."

"Agreed."

"Prepare for my arrival."

"Already done."

"Excellent. Tyrian! Watts! Hazel! Prepare your bags! We're going to Beacon!" The call ended.

"...Who was that?" Jaune finally spoke.

"You'll meet her in a few days. She'll introduce herself then." Ozpin gestured to the elevator. "For now, let me show you to your room."

* * *

"I wanna sleep with Jaune!"

"He's sleeping next to me!"

"Nuh uh! I'm sleeping next to Lover Boy! Back off!"

"Is it not the most logical choice for me, his partner, to sleep next to him?"

"No one is sleeping with Jaune besides me!"

"..." Blake was indisposed. She's lying on the floor, bleeding from the nose at the thoughts in her head.

This was what Jaune saw as he entered his room. He sighed. "What's wrong Fearless Leader?"

He answered to the questioning Nora with a deadpan. "Just reminded of home."

"Aww, you're homesick already? Don't worry!" She gave him a pat on the back. "We'll have this place feeling like home in no time!"

'_That's what I'm afraid of._'

"They're really going at it at who gets to have their bed next to you. Even Ren. Having a soulmate sure is something huh?"

"Yeah..."

Wait a second.

Jaune slowly questioned, "Do you not have a soulmate?"

"Nah." Nora showed off her blank wrist. "Haven't met my life partner yet. But they're out there somewhere! I gonna find them someday, and we're gonna be the greatest pancake eating, sloth loving duo in the world!"

For the first time in a long time, Jaune's face lit up. "I hope you find them someday. Maybe they're closer than you think."

"Then I'll be on the lookout! Mind if you help out Fearless Leader?"

"I'd be honored." He watched Nora dance away in glee. He didn't see the rest of his team nor the room he was in. He could only see the orange-haired beauty. "Nora," he whispered to himself. "you're the one."


	2. Chapter 2

It was a good thing he was used to sleeping in a bed with multiple people in it.

Actually, that's a bad thing.

He got out of his bed, and his eyes lingered over to Ren, the other occupant in his bed. He then looked at the calendar over his bed. He glared at it in disdain.

Monday- Yang

Tuesday- Weiss

Wednesday- Pyrrha

Thursday- Ren

Friday- Blake

Saturday- Ruby

It was only through his pleading that Sunday was kept free, but they wouldn't budge on anything else. He tore his eyes away from the dreaded bed sharing schedule over to the only one who wasn't sharing beds with him. No, Nora had a bed to all to herself. Two beds technically. Ren and Nora made a deal yesterday. Whenever his turn came around, he would lend his bed to Nora for the night. Jaune stared at her, sprawled over her double bed and snoring with a satisfied face, both in envy and in amusement. He looked at her arms, one laid on her stomach, which was uncovered by the blanket, and the other draping over the side of her extra bed.

Bare wrists.

He gripped his own wrist. The spiritual handcuffs manifested. He saw the chain links, six of them leading to the people sleeping in here and the rest going beyond the confines of the his dorm room.

None of them were connected to her.

'_Nora,' _he thought as he got his designated Beacon uniform, toothbrush, and toothpaste._ 'I wonder what being with you would be like.' _He stepped into the bathroom and got dressed. '_Electric Absorption Semblance. Her weapon is Magnhild, a dual hammer and grenade launcher._' He went over to the sink and brushed his teeth. '_Hyperactive. Childhood friends with Ren. Apparently likes pancakes and sloths. That's all I got for now. I need to get to know her better._' He finished his morning routine. Jaune looked into the mirror, grinned and vowed to his reflection. "Alright. Starting today, I'm going to do everything I can to be with her!" He stepped out of the bathroom confidently.

**Mwah! Mwah! Mwah!**

Jaune groaned. Stupid alarm, being annoying as usual. He cursed himself for forgetting to turn it off. He put away his pajamas and walked over to his personal desk where his Scroll laid.

**Mwah! Mwah! Mwah! Mwa- Beep!**

"Jaune, what was that?" He turned to see everyone up and awake, looking at him with "interest." Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang sported frowns, although Yang looked like she was ready to chuckle at any moment while Blake had a red face. Ren merely looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Nora was openly giggling (cute, Jaune thought). Lastly was Pyrrha, who's eyes were shadowed by her hair.

He calmly answered to Pyrrha who had asked the question, "My kissing alarm."

"Is that so?" She forcefully threw her blanket off and got out of her bed. "May I ask, who was giving you kisses in that alarm?" Jaune easily dismissed the way she asked that with closed eyes, a fake smile, and a clenched fist.

"My family."

"Oh." Just like that, Pyrrha relaxed and blinked in surprise, the others in the room doing the same. Nora, at the revelation, ended up kicking her legs and slapping her bed, her giggling having transformed into full blown laughter. Jaune cringed in embarrassment at her reaction.

He quickly explained, "I didn't ask for this alarm! One of my sisters just made it so that I literally cannot change or remove it!"

"Ooh, you have a sister too?" Ruby curiously asked.

"Sisters," he corrected. "Seven sisters."

"Seven!?" Were the numerous shocked replies.

"Geez, your parents sure got busy a lot," Yang said with a snicker. "Did they not have any hobbies?"

Weiss scowled to Yang before saying, "Putting that aside, is this some sort of prank? I don't see why they would give you such an alarm otherwise."

Ruby suggested, "Or maybe they're really close to him. Families are like that."

"_Remember little brother, your oldest sister loves you the most!_"

"_For our future kids, I'm thinking Morgana for a girl and Adrian for a boy._"

"_Feel free to come to me for anything Jaune. And I do mean, anything._"

"_Jaune, can I have a kiss?_"

"_No, kiss me first!_"

"_My calculations show that I'm clearly the superior sister. You agree, right Jaune?_"

"_Big brother, can you marry me first?_"

"_You've grown into such a big boy! Mommy loves you so much baby!_"

"_Jaune, let us have a father-son bonding session._"

"Yeah," Jaune slowly responded. "We're close."

Her laughter finally died down, Nora questioned, "So, what are we doing up so early?"

Ren reminded, "Nora, we're students now. We have classes to attend."

"When do they start anyway?" Weiss asked.

"Nine. It's eight now." Jaune opened the door and stepped into the hallway. "Get ready and we'll get breakfast." He closed the door to his dorm room and brought up his Scroll. He spent the time examining and remembering the layout of Beacon Academy and going over his schedule. Fifteen minutes later, they all stepped out, dressed in their school uniforms. "Alright, let's go."

Before he could take a step, he was complimented. "You look nice Jaune."

Jaune grunted in response, but no one heard that as the rest immediately spoke up after Ren. Ruby threw her hand up. "I think you look nice too!"

"I concur. Properly dressed, and looking like quite the gentleman," Weiss approved.

"Handsome," Blake stated.

Pyrrha started, "You-"

"I heard compliments!" Yang burst out into the hallway and closed the door behind her. "Sorry Jaune, was brushing my hair. What do you think?" She posed seductively. "Looking sexy, aren't I?"

Jaune deadpanned, but that wasn't seen. They wanted to be praised too! "Jaune, don't I look cool?" Ruby grabbed and showed off the cloak she wore with her uniform.

Weiss stood firmly straight. "I look like a model student, if I say so myself. Does this look please you?"

"What do you think of me?" Blake asked as she subconsciously touched the bow on her head.

Ren adjusted his tie while looking at Jaune in the eye.

"I-"

"I'm hungry," Nora interrupted. "Can we go eat now?"

Jaune grinned and nodded. "Let's go." He went off, and his team followed. Pyrrha trailed behind with gritted teeth. Her day just started and it was already terrible. She hoped it wouldn't get worse.

* * *

"Ha ha! I had never given up hope in finding my soulmate, and now my patience has been rewarded! This calls for a celebration! I shall tell a special tale of my youth when I was a handsome lad like you! I was but a boy when-"

* * *

"Fascinating!Thefeelingoffindingone'ssoulmateisjustasexcitingandnerve-wrackingasallofmyreportssay!Weshoulddiscussthisanothertimethough!Besuretopayattentionclosely!Ihavehighexpectationsofyou!Nowlet'sbeginclass-"

* * *

"I didn't think my soulmate would be a student of mine (although that's kinda hot). Nevertheless, I am still your teacher, and you my student (Student-teacher relationships are now my turn on). If you have trouble understanding something, I'll do what I can to assist you (I can "help" you with ANYTHING). Feel free to see me after class anytime (so that we can fu-)"

* * *

'_Professor Port. Professor _(Doctor!)_ Oobleck. Professor Peach._' Pyrrha made more room for her "hit list" as she and her team walked into their next class and took their seats in the bleachers.

Yang gagged. "I can't imagine being soulmates with a couple of old dudes like Port and Oobleck."

"Even if I do agree that it is a bit disgusting to think about," Weiss conceded. "You shouldn't talk about Jaune's soulmates like that. We're ones as well."

"Isn't Professor Ozpin old?" Ruby added. "Do you problem with him too?"

Yang answered, "Nah, Ozpin admittedly looks charming for his age. Port, you can tell he's an old man, I'm talking real old. Oobleck... well, I can't imagine anyone keeping up with him, in conversations and in life."

Ruby nodded. Even she had trouble keeping up with their history teacher. "What about Miss Goodwitch? She's old like them right?"

Blake went wide-eyed. "Uh Ruby..."

"Well-"

*Smack!* *Smack*

"Ow!"

"Hey, what the-"

"I'll let you two off with a warning," Combat instructor Glynda Goodwitch sent them a steely-eyed glare as she telekinetically retrieved her riding crop. "considering class hasn't officially started yet." The sisters apologized with shivers. She turned her focus on her soulmate. "How has the day been treating you Mr. Arc?" His response was a blank stare. She nodded in understanding. "Yes, I've heard the news. Professors Port, Oobleck, and Peach were quite ecstatic." Goodwitch mentally sympathized when she saw the grumblings and/or grossed out looks from her fellow soulmates. "Please inform me of any future griefs they may give you. I'll rectify their behavior." Jaune half-heartedly nodded, which was enough to satisfy the professor. The bell rung, and Goodwitch cleared her throat. She addressed to the fully occupied room, "Now, let us begin Combat Class."

Jaune half listened to the explanations she gave. His mind was focused on giddy ginger girl sitting spaces away from him. It was a contrast from History Class with Oobleck, where she fell asleep nearly instantly. Her excitement exceeded the level she shown in Grimm Studies and Dust Class, where she was enraptured with Port's "fantastical" tales and prospects of experimenting with Dust. Although, judging by the look she had at the time, she was most likely not interested in the science behind Dust. He added to his Nora list, '_Likes Port's stories, finds history boring, probably likes blowing stuff up if her weapon implies anything._' Now that that was one, time to think of strategies that would woo Nora.

...

...

...

'.._.I'm drawing a blank_,' he concluded. '_I'm drawing a blank? I'm drawing a blank!? Impossible! How could this happen? How could I not even have a single idea? I have years of experience! I had soulmates for long as I can remember! Soulmates of all kinds: sweet, aggressive, silent, loud, energetic, lazy, normal, eccentric, legal, not legal! How am I having trouble thinking of ideas to attract Nora?!_'

* * *

Meanwhile, Combat Class was still in session. Yang's punch had narrowly missed Pyrrha's face, giving her opponent a perfect opportunity. Pyrrha attacked with her shield, which Yang managed to block. However, this left her open. Pyrrha had changed Miló into its rifle form, and she fired four shots at Yang's chest. Each bullet pushed the girl back, but Pyrrha didn't let up. Miló changed into javelin mode and she hurled it. As she predicted, Yang swung at it, knocking her weapon into the air, where she had ran up and jumped to retrieve it. Pyrrha flung Akoúo̱, the shield hitting Yang in the face just as she had lowered her arm. Pyrrha fell down and landed a kick in Yang's face. She back flipped off, grabbed her shield mid-air, and took three more shots at Yang. The girl fell down to her knee, just as Pyrrha made a graceful landing, and Yang took deep breaths.

Looked like stories of Pyrrha weren't an exaggeration. She was good, much better than Yang had anticipated. Things weren't looking in her favor. Her aura was sitting at 30%, and Pyrrha at sixty. A couple more hits, and she'd lose the match. "C'mon Yang! You can do it!" Yang turned to the bleachers and saw Ruby cheering for her.

"No interruptions Miss Rose. You should be taking notes on this fight."

Ruby withered under Goodwitch's reprimand, but she still mouthed, "You can do it!" to her.

Yang grinned. Well, she better not let her sister down. Come to think of it, was Jaune cheering for her too? Her eyes went over to her soulmate, and her face fell. Jaune had a frown, a look of frustration. "Am I disappointing him?" She whispered to herself. She thought she was putting up a decent fight. She was up against Pyrrha Nikos, the four time champion of the Mistral Region Tournament, for crying out loud. It was guaranteed that every student in here would lose to her. Yet it looked Jaune didn't care. It was like he thought she could overcome this challenge. "Am I not meeting his expectations?" He expected her to win? Does that mean, "He thinks I can win?

"Jaune thinks I can win?"

Jaune... was cheering for her?

Yang stood up, and she felt her the familiar sensation of her hair catching fire. She banged her shotgun gauntlets together. Yang's eyes focused on Jaune again, and she saw him gasp. She smirked and her attention shifted back to a slightly surprised Pyrrha. She declared, "I don't feel like losing!" She ran straight to her opponent. '_This is for Jaune!_'

* * *

Jaune gasped in realization. '_Of course! With soulmates, I already had their attraction. I didn't need to do anything to earn them. I didn't need to learn anything._' He gritted at the thought. '_That just means that I actually don't know anything at all about romance. Aw man, it's hopeless. I'm never going to get her to like me_.' The instant he thought that, he shook his head and slapped his face.

"Hey buddy, you alright?"

Jaune waved it off. "I'm fine."

**Clang!**

'_I can't think like that! I won't let this chance slip by me. I just have to try. That's all I can do. Still, where do I even start? How do I even begin to get Nora's attention?_'

"Mr. Arc." Hmm? "Mr. Winchester. You two are next. Go prepare yourselves and come down here to the arena." Jaune stood up and made his way to the locker room, ignoring all of the encouragements from the rest of his team.

Ruby pumped her fist. "Go kick some butt Jaune!"

"You better not lose!" Weiss cheered(?).

Blake waved a flag. "Do your best."

Ren said simply, "Fight well."

Except for one of course. "You got this Fearless Leader!"

"Could you throw in a good word for me?"

"You're on your own Russel," Cardin denied as he followed after Jaune. He walked by his side. "Hey," he greeted, not looking at the shorter teen. Jaune didn't respond. Cardin frowned and tried again. "So..." Silence again. He took a glance at Jaune. His eyes and face were forward, not seeming to acknowledge him. What's his problem? Cardin thought back to the last interaction he had with Jaune. '_Is he that pissed about that?_' That's the only conclusion he could come up with for why his soulmate was ignoring him. "Sorry about what I said about your pajamas."

"..."

Well, he tried. Only thing left to do was to fight him. Maybe if Jaune vented out his frustrations, he'd be willing to chat with him. Plus, this was the perfect chance to see just how strong his soulmate was. Cardin took a good look at Jaune's body. Judging by his physique, he looked pretty weak. Looking like he'd have to toughen Jaune up after beating him down. No offense to Jaune of course. '_Just proving I'm the stronger one,_' Cardin thought as he retrieved his mace and fighting uniform from his locker.

As Jaune attached his sheathed sword to his hip, he thought about how to play this out. '_I could try for a curb stomp. Maybe she'd be excited at seeing me totally outclass Cardin. Then again, she looks like she's one for theatrics. A one-sided battle will bore her if she's expecting an actual fight. Maybe I could be flashy and pull off some tricky techniques? If I had any anyway. Sword and shield aren't exactly the most showy weapons. There's also a dramatic approach. I could make it look like I'm fighting against an equal, and then win at the very last second because I'm sure not going to lose. But what if Cardin fights someone in the future and loses badly? That would make Nora think I was lame! Darn it. How should I go about this match?_'

"Are both fighters ready?" Huh. Looked like he stumbled into the arena while he was thinking. He and Cardin nodded. Cardin got into his ready stance while Jaune stood still, not even bringing out Crocea Mors. His opponent frowned at the disrespect. If it was anyone else, he wouldn't have cared. '_Take me seriously Jaune! I'm giving you the courtesy!_'

Goodwitch raised her arm. "Then-"

'_Oh well, guess I'll just fight-_'

Nora cheered, "Break a leg!"

'_-with all I've got!_'

"Begin!"

'_Why am I in the air?_' Cardin wondered. '_And why does my jaw hurt? Wait, why am I not falling? Is that a sword? Is the sword juggling me in the air? Oh shit, now the sword's a saw! No, it's just spinning really fast! Augh, my back! Well, at least I'm on the ground now. Ow, my face! Everything's gone black! Wait, the light's back! Hey, is that a shield? Ouch! Get the shield off my face!_'

"Winner, Jaune Arc!" Goodwitch called to the stunned students. "Mr. Winchester's aura is in the red. Like the previous match with Miss Nikos and Miss Xiao Long, this indicates the fighter's defeat."

"...That was awesome!"

Jaune heard Nora's excited whisper breaking the silence, and he smiled. As he groaned in pain, he heard Ms. Goodwitch addressing him. "Mr. Winchester, I apologize, but I cannot give you any useful advice regarding your fighting style given the outcome of this fight." He winced at her words. "I'll issue you a match another class session. For now, the most I can offer is to improve your reaction time." Cardin gave a slow nod. The professor turned to Jaune. "I must request that you tone it down next time." Jaune chuckled sheepishly, but non-apologetically. "With that said, your skills are top-notch, and you possess an effective style of fighting. Although," she eyed him seriously. "don't be satisfied at your level. Always continue to improve." Jaune nodded.

**Ring!**

"Class dismissed." Her attention shifted from the students getting up back to the blonde boy. "Well done Jaune," she said just to him with a small grin. She raised her voice slightly. "Mr. Arc, Mr. Winchester, you two change back and continue with your day." She left to perform her other duties.

Still in a good mood, Jaune placed Crocea Mors back on his hip and made his way over to downed Cardin. He extended a hand. Cardin looked at it warily. He turned his head up to Jaune, but his hesitancy vanished when he saw the grin on Jaune's face. "Come on," he said. Cardin took the hand and slowly got up. "Thanks for the fight." Jaune turned around and left before he could retort.

He stared at Jaune's retreating back in confusion. What fight? It was over in seconds, a total beatdown. He was completely outclassed. Cardin felt his scratched armor. They were proof of Jaune's domination. And yet, Jaune seemed glad for it anyway. Why? He placed a hand on his stinging chin. That uppercut. Cardin felt it. Jaune threw that punch with everything he had. That spinning buzzsaw attack, those shield blows to his face. Jaune went all out. '_Guess he was taking the fight seriously. We both showed each other respect, even if I didn't see it._'

"Hey!" Cardin snapped out of it to see Jaune calling him. "You comin' or what?" After a moment, Cardin smirked and hurried after him. Guess that meant they were on speaking terms now.

After changing back to their Beacon uniforms, Jaune and Cardin exited the locker room and found themselves swarmed. "That was amazing Jaune!" Ruby exclaimed. "You finished that so fast, I'm almost jealous."

"Exceptional performance," Weiss complimented. "I'd expect nothing less."

Ren and Blake nodded with grins.

Pyrrha suggested, "We should have a sparring session in the future. I'd like to test myself against you sometime."

"Count me in too!" Yang threw mock punches. "After seeing that fight, I'm just dying to see what else you've got up your sleeve."

Nora pouted. "Wished I fought too. I could've blown everyone away!"

"Figuratively," Ren sternly added.

"Figuratively. Right." Ren said nothing and Jaune chuckled at her whistling and crossed fingers.

Russel asked his partner in concern. "You alright?"

"I'm fine."

"I dunno man," Dove doubted. "You took quite the beating."

Sky asked, "You sure you're okay?"

Cardin smiled at their concern. "Thanks, but really. I'm doing alright." He nudged Jaune and echoed, "Thanks for the fight."

Russel went alarmed, aware at who was standing next to his partner and leader. "O-Oh, uh, nice fight out there. That was sweet."

Sky also congratulated, "Yeah, that was really cool!"

Dove chipped in, "I'd hate to go up against you."

**Clang! Clang!**

All of them, sans two people, stared in silence at the handcuffs bounding Sky and Dove to Jaune.

Nora put a hand to chin. "Hmm, how many is that now? Thirteen right?"

'_Not even close Nora,_' Jaune mentally answered, his face souring at the sight of the handcuffs.

"-Peach, and you two!"

"Four," Cardin corrected by manifesting his own handcuffs and Russel joining him.

"Oh. Fifteen then." Just then, her stomach growled. "Speaking of, I need fifteen pancakes! No wait! Double that! Team JWNPRBRY, to lunch!" She suddenly stopped her dash. "If that's what Leader orders."

Jaune sighed. "Yeah, let's go get lunch."

* * *

Some alone time was always too much to ask for. He simply wanted to walk around the Academy grounds alone, but his team and Team CRDL had tagged along. Yang and Cardin were uncomfortably close to him. At least they weren't trying to talk to him. They were busy talking about their own fights to one another (after Yang stopped teasing Cardin). Nora was talking to Ruby about Magnhild about potential upgrade. The rest of them were chatting about something he didn't bother to care about.

"Ah, students." Said group turned their focus to the Headmaster. "Good timing. I was about to fetch Mr. Arc, and here you are."

Pyrrha asked cautiously, "What do you need him for?"

He answered by pointing his toward the sky. "I have some guests arriving, and we were about to meet them." They all turned their heads to see an Airship in the distance. Jaune thought back to yesterday. Was it her?

Nora raised a hand. "Ooh, can we come?"

"I don't see why not. Come along if you wish. Mr. Arc, let us go." Jaune would rather not, but knew he had no choice in the matter as Ozpin was already walking away. Jaune went after him, and, as expected, his team and CRDL followed.

They arrived at the skyport as the door to the airship opened. The first to step out was a woman. Each of them stared at the woman's body ash she got closer. Her skin and hair were ghostly white, and bloody red veins were visible on her arms and face. Her eyes were a deep red, and her sclerae pitch black. If the Beacon students were asked to describe her, they would all share the same answer: Grimm.

"Oz," she greeted. "I wasn't expecting an audience." (J)WNPRBRY and CRDL took a step back, each of them tense.

"They followed Jaune."

"Hmm. I see." That's when she saw the blonde boy. "That's him, right?" Ozpin confirmed with a nod. "Good." She walked over and stood in front of him. "My name is Salem. A pleasure to meet my soulmate."

The teens's wariness was replaced by shock. "You're Jaune's soulmate too!?"

Nora whined. "Aw man, I could've eaten an extra pancake!"

Salem asked Ozpin. "Who are these children anyway?"

"They are all Jaune's soulmates, minus Nora Valkryie." He pointed to the orange head with his cane.

"Why do you look so weird?" Nora asked bluntly.

"Nora, you just can't ask why people look like the way they do."

"But aren't you curious too Ren?"

"To answer your question, it's a side effect of my semblance," Salem responded. "I control Grimm."

'_Easiest lie ever_,' Ozpin and Salem thought.

"Control Grimm?" The students repeated. Even Jaune looked a bit interested.

"Indeed. Unfortunately, overuse of my semblance caused my appearance to change to what it is now." The students looked to each other, unsure. They could accept the explanation of her appearance, but if overusing her Semblance changed what she looked like, then what's to say that her personality and mind were safe? "But enough about that. As fellow soulmates, I must ask: Which of you has slept with Jaune?" Their brains ceased thinking, and their faces turned red. Jaune just groaned.

Nora was more than happy to break the news. She pulled her best friend in close and jabbed his chest. "Renny here has!"

"Really?" Salem leaned forward and eyed Ren. "Tell me the details."

Ren composed himself. "That's not what she meant-"

"I almost slept with him!" Ruby interrupted

Yang snickered. "I mean, technically-"

Weiss growled. "You know that's not what-"

"Ha! Almost doesn't count! You girls haven't slept in the same bed as him and share a wild night of passionate love making!" The mere thought got more blood rushing to their cheeks.

Salem asked Ren, "So were you a bottom or top?"

He objected, "None of that happ-"

"I'm sleeping with him tonight."

"Blake, stop being misleading like them!" Weiss chastised.

"May I have the night after?"

"No!" They (J)W(N)PRBRY shot down.

Ruby hissed. "That's my night!"

"Then how about after that?"

"No!" Jaune silently joined the denial. Not his free day!

Meanwhile, Pyrrha was shaking her fist at the reminder of the sleep schedule. Cardin asked his team, "You think the Headmaster will let us move in with them?"

Russel answered. "Their dorm room is the biggest in the academy and it can only hold eight people."

"... Do you guys know if Jaune has any other soulmates that we can team up with?" They shook their heads. "Damn."

Salem grinned at the teens' banter before turning to Ozpin. "Where shall I be staying?"

"I'll escort you to your living quarters soon," Ozpin said. "Now, about your company?"

"Oh yes. Excuse me. Let me introduce them all to you." She walked over to the group of people that left the Airship with her. She started with the well-dressed tanned man with a mustache. "This is Dr. Arthur Watts."

"Greetings children, Ozpin."

Next was a pale man with an open jacket, displaying his scarred chest. "Tyrian Callows."

"Hello." The students each took a step back from his menacing smirk and predatory tone.

After him was a incredibly tall bearded man in green with hairy arms and barely visible scars. "Hazel Rainart." The man didn't say anything as he was too busy glaring at Ozpin. Salem placed her hands on a stunning woman in a red dress. "And this here is Cinder Fall." Said Cinder also had a scowl, her face scrunched up in thought about something. Salem waved her hand over to the last of the group. "These are Cinder's friends. I don't know them."

One of them was a pale teen with gray hair. He casually greeted them all, "Sup. Name's Mercury Black."

The other was a dark skinned woman with mint green hair. "Emerald Sustrai," she quickly stated before her eyes went back to eyeing Cinder in concern.

Salem walked back to the students. "Watts, Tyrian, Hazel, Cinder, Mercury, Emerald." She stopped and gestured to the boy she stood in front of. "Allow me to introduce Jaune Arc."

"...Hi," he slowly said with great hesitation.

The six of them turned their attention to him and voiced their thoughts at the same time. "Salem's soulmate, a mere schoolboy. Fascinating."

"I admit, you do look interesting. Heh heh." Another step back was taken.

Hazel grunted in acknowledgment.

"So you're the reason my plans were ruined." Completely enraged malice, absolutely furious animosity, and full of a burning, nearly unrestrained, murderous desire could not even begin to describe the look Cinder gave Jaune.

Mercury remarked, "Huh. Thought he'd be taller."

Emerald bluntly stated, "I don't see anything special."

Six chains shot forward. Jaune blankly looked at the new handcuffs around the wrists of Salem's group. They too glanced at their wrists curiously before they realized what happened.

"Hmm, I've been meaning to study the field of soulmates eventually. A soulmate assistant will prove beneficial."

Tyrian's smirk became wider. "Sharing a soulmate with my Goddess. I knew you were interesting."

Hazel clenched his handcuff and whispered. "I promise to protect this. Watch over me Gretchen."

All hatred disappeared from Cinder's face, whose cheeks became the color of her dress. She made eye contact with Jaune before she faced away bashfully.

Mercury saw this as a win. "Oh cool. New family."

"Finally." Tears started to form from Emerald's eyes. "I can be truly happy."

The two teams were having trouble getting their jaws off the ground. Ozpin and Salem chuckled at the reactions. "Now that that's out of the way, I believe you were to escort us to our rooms."

Ozpin nodded to her. "Indeed. Gather your group and follow me." He faced the teens, said, "Enjoy your day students," and went off.

Salem motioned with her hand. "All of you, come." They all went after her, giving last glances to Jaune as they passed, with Tyrian's face adopting an even creepier look somehow. Steam threatened to blow from Cinder's face as she speed walked off. Mercury gave a two-finger salute as he left and Emerald waved with a smile after wiping her tears (Jaune swore he saw several wallets in her other hand as she jogged away).

The two teams, sans Jaune, watched them leave in silence. One of them unfroze and walked over to the leader. "That's twenty now right?"

'_No._'

"How are you gonna keep up with them all?'

'_I don't plan to._' With his good mood officially gone, there was only one thing left to do. "I'm going to go sleep."

"Okie dokie, sleep tight. Wait, what about us?"

"You all do whatever you want."

She gasped. "I never got to do whatever I wanted before! This is gonna be great!" With that, she charged off in a random direction without supervision.

'_Glad you're having good time Nora_.' Jaune walked back to his dorm room with one positive thought.


	3. Chapter 3

Ren and Pyrrha came back into the room, the former exhausted. "Any luck?" Yang asked as she played with a paddle ball.

"No." He paced around the room, restlessly tapping a finger against one of his crossed arms. "I checked around the entire academy three times. Asked every student, went inside every classroom. I even checked the library. I ended up making three stacks of pancakes to lure her out! Yet, I still couldn't find her." Ren took a seat on her bed. He pondered his next move as he stared at the Scroll she left behind.

"So do you have any pancakes left?" Ruby sleepily asked with hopeful eyes from her desk.

"No snacks. Get back to work."

Ruby whined. "But Weiss, we've been studying these textbooks for the past three hours! I need a break!"

Ren apologized. "Sorry Ruby, but I ate all of the pancakes."

"What?! You couldn't save any?"

"I got hungry as I looked for her in my panicked state." Ren then groaned and put his hand over his stomach. "Bad idea in hindsight. I can't put away as much as her."

Weiss tapped the materials in front of her and Ruby. "Return to your studies. We can't have you falling behind the other students."

"Perhaps you two can put that off for now." Pyrrha looked out the window. "It is getting late. We should focus on finding our missing teammate."

With a huff, Weiss relented. "Fine. I suppose that's enough for the day." Her partner slumped in her chair in relief. "How do you like your coffee?"

"Cream and five sugars please."

Weiss muttered, "Would you like some coffee with that?" Nevertheless, she went over to the room's coffee maker.

Reading a book on the sleeping Jaune's bed, Blake said to Ren, "So if no one has seen her, then perhaps Nora is not in Beacon."

Ren gripped his sleeve tightly. He could already feel the sweat dripping down his face from the images his mind conjured. "That just makes this situation worse."

**Slam!**

"Hello JWNPRBRY!"

Pyrrha unleashed the most unholy of screams.

Blake jumped off the bed, landing on all fours in high alert. "Hiss!"

"Wah!"

"Ah! Hot! Hot! Weiss, get it off!"

"What the-Aw man! I was so close to ten thousand hits!"

"Nora!"

"Hey best buddy!" She welcomed the hug Ren gave her.

"What's with all the noise?" Jaune yawned as he rubbed his eyes.

Ren let go and interrogated, "Where we you? Pyrrha and I have been looking for you for hours!"

"Well, you know that Airship that Salem person was on?"

"Yeah?"

"I got on it and told the pilot to go to Vale!"

Blake mentally patted herself on the back after she recollected herself. "Knew she wasn't in Beacon."

"What did you do in Vale?" Ren pried further. Civilian harassment/assault, escaping the police, being banned from establishments, destruction of said establishments, Ren braced for it all. He mentally prepared himself for any news of chaos his overly hyper friend had rained down upon that unfortunate city.

"I got a job!"

**Ren .exe has stopped working**

**System Failure**

**System Restart Required**

**System Restarting...**

**Progress - 1%**

With a small smile, Jaune congratulated, "Good job."

"Eh, it's a decent job I guess. Not bad, but pay's good enough for me."

Not what he meant, but whatever. "When do you start?"

"Tomorrow at noon. Which means," Nora rushed to the bathroom, instantly came out with her pajamas on, and leaped onto her bed. "it's time to hit the sack!"

Jaune chuckled. Then, an idea struck him. "Hey Nora?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you mind if I come with you tomorrow?"

She giggled in amusement. "Silly Jaune. You don't work there!"

He grinned. "I know that. I just want to see where you work is all."

Weiss cupped her chin and hummed. "I too am interested to see what kind of establishment you applied yourself to." '_It's only been a day, but I get the feeling she's quite unhinged. What kind of place would hire her?_'

"You were in Vale right?" Yang asked. "Is that where you work?"

"Yep!"

"That's perfect! I was gonna ask you all wanted if you wanted to hang out there tomorrow anyway. What do you say team?"

"Yes please!" Ruby practically begged. "Anything besides studying tomorrow!"

"First of all, stop waving your arm around, you're going to spill coffee!" She immediately relented to Weiss's command. "Secondly, we'll continue with your studies after our trip to Vale tomorrow." Ruby half whined as she sipped her mug.

"So you're in?"

"Indeed."

"Alright." Yang turned her head to her partner. "And you Blake?"

"Why not." Inwardly, Blake thought, '_Please let there be harem novels at Tukson's!'_

Pyrrha joined, "I suppose if everyone else is going, so will I. I could definitely use the break," she gave Nora a tired look. "especially after today."

Yang pumped her fist. "Nice, looks like we're all going!"

"Nuh uh! Renny hasn't answered yet," Nora pointed out.

**Progress - 7%**

"Let's just say that's a yes," said Pyrrha as she walked up to Ren, carried him over her shoulder, and dumped him on his bed.

Nora poked her frozen friend. An idea popped in her mind. She "requested" with a smirk, "Mind if I borrow your pillow Renny? Thanks!" Her head hit her own soft pillow as she held Ren's to her chest with a tight grip. "Ah, this is how you sleep. Night team!"

'_Good night._' Jaune looked away from Nora now that she was instantly asleep and closed his eyes in thought. '_I guess being alone with her tomorrow was too much to ask for. Still, I need to use whatever time I have to get closer to her,_' he thought about the rest of his team. '_before they inevitably try to rope me around Vale._' He grimaced as a thought hit him. '_Vale. Right. More of "them" to deal with. Need to plan out the day to minimize contact with them and maximize my time with Nora._'

"Jaune." He looked to Blake, who was shaking his shoulder. "You can't sleep sitting up. Lay down." With a mental sigh, he reluctantly did so. He ignored the girl cuddling against him as he let sleep take him.

In the middle of the night, he awoke to Blake's twitching bow touching his face. '_Faunus,_' he mentally noted. '_Fox? No, definitely cat. How many is that now? Eh, doesn't matter._' He went back to sleep with that mystery solved.

* * *

Nora jumped and waved to get their attention, despite being a few steps behind. "C'mon guys, I don't wanna be late!"

Ren stood beside her, the two near the ramp leading to the Airship, still a bit in disbelief that Nora did indeed get a job. '_She always finds a way to surprise me._' He reminded, "Nora, it's 9:20. We'll be there early."

"But what if the Airship gets attacked by giant Nevermores, their feathers burst through the window and the pilots are speared through the heads? Or the engine overheats and just explodes into pieces? Or sky pirates from another Airship decide to raid us and then blast us out of the sky?" Nora grabbed Ren's arms and furiously shook his body. "It'll crash! I'll be late!"

Ren, unfazed from her breakdown, calmly removed Nora's arms from his person. "I'm sure your manager will understand your tardiness then."

"I think we'd have bigger problems in those scenarios," Blake said when the group caught up.

With dull eyes, Weiss told the ginger loony. "There are so many things wrong with what you said I won't even dignify it with a response."

"We heard a bunch of shouting." Seven heads turned their attention to Cardin and his team. "And something about sky pirates. What's all this about?"

A hand slapped over her mouth. Nora narrowed her eyes in a pout at Ren. "We're just about to head into Vale," he explained.

Russel raised an eyebrow. "And that involves sky pirates?"

"Sky Pirates, huh?"

Dove slapped his oddly intrigued partner. "You're not becoming a "sky pirate," and even if you did, your name for your crew sucks!"

Sky whined. "What's wrong with it?"

"It is kind of obvious," Cardin critiqued.

"Forget about the sky pirates!" Weiss stomped her foot. "Can we please stop talking about something so foolish and get inside the Airship already!?"

"Yeesh, what crawled up your ass?" Attention shifted once more, to a group of three.

Weiss scowled. "Excuse me?"

Mercury shrugged. "Hey, just a question."

"Ignore him. He's always an annoying jerk," Emerald told them all.

"Aw, but I'm such a great guy. You always keep me around."

"I'd trade you for a single cent if I could. Hell, I'd give you away for free."

Mercury waggled a finger. "Ah ah ah. That's slavery, and that's illegal. Then again, knowing you."

Like you're one to talk, Emerald communicated with an eye glance. She looked to the teens in front of her and spotted him. She smiled and ran up to him. "Hey Jaune!" Jaune took his eyes off Nora and glanced at Emerald.

"Wassup my man?" Mercury greeted.

Jaune grunted at the two. "What's wrong?" Emerald asked in concern.

"Tired," he answered semi-truthfully. '_Tired of all these people attached to me._'

"Well that sucks." Emerald snapped her fingers. "I bet a trip into town will cheer you up!"

"Well, that is why we're here," Ruby spoke up. "Team JWNPRBRY is heading into Vale."

"What a coincidence, so are we. We'll tag along," Cinder "suggested" with confidence as she gestured to Mercury and Emerald. In doing so, her eyes landed on Jaune. She blushed, looked away and poked her fingers together. "I mean... if that's okay with..."

"Mind if we come too?" Cardin asked for him and his team. "We got nothing better to do."

"Sure, why not?" Ruby, having gotten along with Team CRDL and being curious about Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury, answered the two teams.

Yang whistled. "Man, this party got big quick. Well, the more the merrier I say!"

Pyrrha's nails dug into her palms as she sharply reminded, "You were heading into Vale anyway. You have some business to do?"

"Yeah, but nothing too important," Mercury answered. "Just some "errands" to take care of."

"Then we can hang with (_Jaune_) you all after our errands are done," Emerald finished.

"This was suppose to be a team outing with just us eight," Pyrrha growled through clenched teeth.

Before anyone could argue further, they heard Nora's shout. "Hey!" They saw her standing outside of the Airship's entrance waving. "Hurry up! Or else me and Leader are gonna leave without you!"

"That'd be nice," Jaune muttered silently, already standing next to her.

Ren cursed himself, not only for losing track of Nora once again but also his partner, before making his way to them. The rest followed in hot pursuit. Jaune begrudgingly watched them get closer. He took his eyes off of them to look at Nora. "What is your job anyway?"

Nora smiled and pounded her fist against her chest. "I'm a bouncer!"

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "Like, for a club?"

"Yep!"

He had a bad feeling, but he had to ask. "What's the club called?"

* * *

"Jaune! Good to see you again!" The man wrapped his arms around him and lifted him up with a laugh.

"Junior," he barely acknowledged the club owner invading his space.

"Hey Boss Man!"

"Ah Nora, you're early," Junior said with approval. "Good initiative."

Yang strutted forward with a smirk. "Happy to see me too?"

"Blondie!?" Junior inadvertently let go of Jaune, who dusted himself without Junior's notice, and took a step back. "What the hell you doin' back here?"

Yang playfully put her hand over her heart. "Aw, you didn't miss me at all? I'm hurt."

Nora asked curiously, "How do you know Boss Man Yang?"

"Met him a couple weeks ago. He refused to offer me drinks, so I taught him and his goons a lesson."

"Get your facts straight Blondie!" Junior protested. "She had too much to drink, and when I tried to limit her, she went berserk and trashed my club and my employees!"

Ruby hit her palm in realization. "Oh, I remember that night!" Then she frowned. "I had to drag your smelly drunk butt home."

"Somehow I'm not surprised," Weiss said as she looked at Yang with disgust.

Yang chuckled, more at Ruby's statement than Weiss's. "Yeah, sorry again sis. I was in a bit of a bad mood that day."

"I know, I understand."

"You won't find me so forgiving."

"But Junior, you really should be thanking me. I got your club renovated." Yang waved her arms around, indicating at the colorful new dance floor, with its six crystal pillars emitting light from within, and an upgraded DJ booth with protective glass. "And I got rid of your sucky minions and got you a kickass replacement," She wrapped her arms around Nora. "I did you a favor when you really think about it."

Junior eyed Nora warily. "You're friends with Blondie huh? That would've been nice to know."

"Aw, I've seen that look on Ren before," Nora whined. "You're gonna fire me?"

"Thanks for the idea.

Jaune threw his hand out. "Hang on. Let Nora keep this job."

Junior stopped. "What? Why Jaune?"

He gestured to Yang. "Just because she's friends with her doesn't mean Nora should be fired," he reasoned. "Give Nora a chance."

Junior's eyes darted between Nora and Yang, a frown on his face as he contemplated Jaune's request. After a few moments, he relented, "Alright. I'll allow you to work here Nora."

"Oh yeah!" She threw her fist up in celebration. "Thanks Boss Man!"

Junior huffed. "Thank Jaune. He's the only reason why I'm giving you this chance."

"Thanks Jaune!" Nora smiled at him. "You're awesome!"

Jaune smiled back as he congratulated himself for receiving praise from her. "Anytime."

"I've been meaning to ask," Pyrrha started as she looked at Junior with curiosity and suspicion. "How exactly do you know Jaune?"

"Came here some time ago. We met then," he answered vaguely. His eyes widened in realization. "Oh that's right. I bet they want to see you too."

"They?"

Junior turned around and called out, "Girls! Jaune's here!"

Pyrrha's nails dug deep into her palm, almost breaking through skin. She quietly snarled, "Girls!?"

They all heard footsteps approaching. Except Jaune, for he was still thinking about Nora's compliment."Jaune!" Said boy's blissful state was demolished when two pairs of arms wrapped themselves around his torso. "We missed you!"

"How have you been?"

More arms joined the party. "Nice to see you girls too."

The twins recognized that dreaded voice. They jumped away and stared at Yang. "Back again huh?"

"You better leave while you can."

"Ho oh!" Yang cracked her knuckles. "I don't think you remember what happened last time."

"We're surprised you do."

"Considering how wasted you were."

Yang smiled threateningly. "Want me to recreate that memory?"

"Melanie, Militia stand down! Blondie, you better back off now!" Junior ordered. The twins reluctantly did as they were told, though they kept their eyes on Yang, who had a winning smile on her face, clearly thinking she won this small dispute.

Melanie asked in frustration, "What are you doing back here anyway?"

Militia went next, "Here to wreck the place again?"

"Nah, just hanging out with friends and wanted to see where Nora worked." The twins looked at Nora cautiously now that they knew that she and Yang were affiliated. "Now for you to answer a question of my own. You two and Junior know Jaune?"

Melanie scoffed. "Know him?"

Militia extended her arm. "We more than know him."

Junior shook his head, but joined in their antic. He showed off his wrist, stated, "We're Jaune's soulmates," and handcuffs manifested on all three of them.

The three smirked triumphantly at Yang, thinking they scored a victory. Yang laughed, confusing them, before she displayed her own handcuffs. "He's my soulmate too."

"Mine as well!" Pyrrha jumped in to show her own chains.

Ruby threw her arm up. "Me too!"

Weiss followed. "You aren't the only ones!"

Blake went after while making a mental note of the names of the twins and the owner.

"I'm Jaune's partner," Ren stated when he summoned forth his handcuffs.

"Don't forget us," Team CRDL said as one with chained wrists raised.

Mercury snickered as he too put his handcuffed hand forward. "This is going to be so awkward in a few moments."

"Regardless, we can't let them outshine us!" Emerald joined in.

Cinder manifested her cuffs. "Jaune belongs to me." Just saying his name caused her to look at the boy. She caught herself and blushed madly. She turned to Junior and the Malachite twins and put on her evil face, hoping they'd mistake her red face for anger.

Needless to say, the three were dumbfounded. "You're... all Jaune's soulmates?"

Nora jumped up. "Not me Boss Man!" Jaune's head hung in dejection at Nora's statement, to no one's notice.

Junior looked at his new employee, a better opinion of her forming. "At least you got that going for you," he murmured to himself. He raised his voice to address the group, "Alright, I think that's enough time wasted. Are you all here to stay?" He got no's and shaken heads, feeling disappointment when Jaune was one of them.

"I will stay," Ren answered.

"Aw that's nice Renny! I'll be okay though, trust me."

"I'll stay regardless."

"Just pay up and I'll have no problem with you staying," Junior said. "As for the rest of you, you better leave and cause no trouble. Nora, follow me. The girls and I will teach you how you're supposed to do things here."

Nora saluted, putting on a semi-serious face. "You got it Boss Man!" She rushed to his side and waved to her friends. "See you guys later!"

"Bye Nora," Jaune sadly waved back.

Junior, Melanie, and Militia turned to Jaune and put on friendly faces. "I know I said this before, but come back anytime," Junior said and he walked off, Nora tailing him.

Ren followed after, but not before saying to his partner, "I'm sorry. Let's do something next time."

"Good to see you again Jaune!"

"Come back soon." The twins flirtatiously waved at him as they departed, although they didn't see Jaune's lack of reaction.

Jaune made to leave as well, his group of annoyances following after him. '_Won't be seeing Nora for a good while. Need to get away and do something else._' He addressed to them all directly, "I'm going to go off on my own and explore the city. Let's regroup when Nora's shift is done." As he expected, he got protests.

"Can I come with you?"

"We should all go together!"

"Why don't you join us? We're going to-"

"W-W-Would you... mind accomp...anying... us?" Cinder covered her embarrassed face with her hands. Emerald and Mercury placed their hands on her shoulder in pity.

Jaune ignored the loud cries and quiet request. He pointed to Cinder's group. "You three got errands to run," He moved on to CRDL. "You should spend time as a team." Next were Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, and Pyrrha. "I'm sure you five have girl stuff to do."

"Isn't that a bit presumptuous?" Weiss questioned.

"Not inaccurate," Blake answered, rolling with the idea to hide why she actually came here.

"Did want to get some shopping done," Yang added.

Ruby whined. "Aw, but I don't wanna do that!"

"We can visit a weapon shop later."

She changed her tune at her sister's promise. "Alright!"

Pyrrha was still insistent. "Why can't I go with-"

Jaune was already running away, but he turned around to call out "See you later." Naturally, the remaining members of JWNPRBRY, CRDL, and Cinder's team didn't see Jaune's eyes staring at the club as he bid his farewell to Nora.

* * *

Jaune walked around aimlessly, head down and not meeting anyone's eyes. He know for certain there were others like the people he ditched hiding among the crowd and he didn't want anything to do with them. It was already bad enough that his time with Nora was cut off way too short. He planned to spend the day at wherever she worked. When he learned it was Junior's Club where she landed her new job, he was ready to put up with whatever nonsense the nuisances had planned for him. Unfortunately, Yang had already caused trouble for the club some time ago. If he had stayed, then the rest of his team would be likely to stay as well. And if that happened, chaos would inevitably erupt. Junior may feel obliged to do him a favor, but Jaune doubted he would allow Nora to keep being a bouncer then since Jaune had the feeling that she would escalate the conflict rather than dissolve it. So he had no choice but to steer clear of Junior's Club for a while.

Not that he completely minded. It sucked that he wouldn't get to be around Nora this time, but free time to himself was always a plus. There would be chances with Nora in the future. Alone time was something he learned to cherish and take at every opportunity. Even if he did nothing but walk in random directions for an hour.

He stopped in his tracks. While he could spend the entire afternoon evading everyone in sight, his legs would eventually tell him to stop. "Where's a good place to stay at for a good couple hours?" he asked himself. As if in answer, his stomach growled. A restaurant isn't such a bad location. He looked around for any food establishments, and, as luck would have it, he saw a street-side noodle bar. "A Simple Wok" the sign said. Jaune walked over and took a seat.

The Shopkeep of the noodle bar greeted, "Hello sir! What would you like to drink?"

Jaune already braced himself when he answered, "People Like Grapes."

**Clang!**

"Oh! Uh- Yes! Okay!" Within seconds, he returns with a glass of iced soda and delicately placed it in front of Jaune. "And what would you like to order?!"

"Whatever you recommend," Jaune said in exasperation.

The old Shopkeep felt his heart beat faster when he heard that the young man trusted him with his order. "Right! I'll get right on that!" He went to prepare. He couldn't serve the same noodles he usually serves customers. Oh no! He was going to make the best bowl of noodles he will ever create in his life for his soulmate!

Jaune rubbed his eyes. This guy was going to be annoying for the rest of his stay. Still, this situation was nothing new. And hey, it's just one old guy. He had enough patience to put up with him for a while. Not like there was anybody else to bother him.

"Hello." Shopkeep turned his head to see two new customers. "Two of today's specials." Jaune grimaced at the sound of new company, but otherwise kept his quiet. As long as he ignored their existence, everything should still be a-okay.

Tap. Tap. Shake. Shake.

Jaune wondered why there was someone messing with his shoulder, but refused to budge. He would not acknowledge their presence.

"What's up with you all of sudden? Why are you bothering this-" The man paused and then smiled when he saw him. "Jaune! Fancy meeting you here!" Ultimately, curiosity got the best of him. Jaune turned to see... a man and a teenage girl he didn't recognize at all. "What? Something wrong Jaune?" He furrowed his brow, wondering who was this guy and why this stranger recognized him. The man snapped his fingers in realization. "Oh right, the disguises." He addressed the girl, "If you would." The girl nodded, and suddenly Jaune saw the two turn into glass and shatter. In their place was an orange-haired man in a white suit wearing a black bowler hat and a pale, petite woman with half-brown, half-pink hair and her attire colored white, pink, and brown. "It's us, Roman and Neo!"

"Oh. Right." Well that mystery was solved. Jaune sighed, cursing his misfortune.

"Well that's a sad face. Something wrong?" Roman asked as Neo poked at Jaune's face to get answers. "Something bad happen recently?" His eyes widened. "Is it about your transcripts to Beacon? Did you get found out?" Neo's hand went to cover her mouth at the possible bad news.

"No, they were good. I got accepted," Jaune answered apathetically.

Roman let out a breath of relief and Neo's went over her heart. "Good. My forging skills are as perfect as ever. So how'd you do?"

"Passed and got made leader of a team."

"Alright! Congratulations!" Neo elatedly clapped her hands. He asked curiously, "Still, what's got you so down?"

Jaune answered honestly, "Past couple days have been rough."

Roman groaned. "I know how that feels." Neo scowled alongside Roman. "Let me tell you Jaune, Neo and I were stuck in a sticky situation and it felt like there was no hope of escaping." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a cigar, and put it in his mouth. "But, by some miracle, we got out, and I gotta say," Roman lit the cigar, inhaled, and blew out smoke. "I haven't felt this good in a long time." Neo shook her head in agreement.

"That's nice," Jaune said enthusiastically .

Roman and Neo didn't pick up on his disinterest. "You bet it is. I'm in such a celebratory mood that I even came here to relatively unknown noodle stand." The Shopkeep overheard and spat in one of the bowls of the day's specials. "Lucky I did though since we caught you here!" At that, Neo gave Jaune an unwanted hug. "So, how is Beacon treating you anyway?"

"Order up!" Three bowls of noodles were placed in front of the customers, with Jaune's bowl being larger than Roman and Neo's. "I hope you enjoy," the Shopkeep said to Jaune specifically.

"That's a big bowl," Roman commented. "You indulging since you made it to Beacon?"

"Nothing of the sort," the Shopkeep answered instead. "Just treating my soulmate is all."

Torchwick raised an eyebrow while Neo narrowed her eyes. He questioned doubtfully, "Jaune's your soulmate?" Shopkeep showed off his spiritual cuffs as proof. "Well, I hope you don't mind, but," he and Neo raised their wrists, and their handcuffs emerged. "we are his soulmates too."

'_Here we go again._' Jaune no longer paid attention to them. He quietly ate his noodles and prayed for the day to end quickly.

* * *

When he got Ren's text saying that Nora was finished, he couldn't be happier to leave. He was the first to show up at Junior's.

"Hello Jaune!" Hugs from the Malachite twins was certainly not the first thing he wanted to see when he arrived.

"Welcome back!" Junior friendly greeted. "Want a drink? On the house."

"No. Just here to pick up Nora."

"Over there." Junior pointed to the bar where said girl was consuming pancakes, Ren sitting beside her. Jaune made his way to her, ignoring how Melanie and Militia still clung to him as he walked.

"-remember how that gang of bikers strolled up to me and demanded that I let all of them in!?"

"It was one drunk guy," Ren corrected.

"And then they pulled out their knives and shotguns when I told them to buzz off?!"

"He only had a broken beer bottle."

"Sounds like you had fun." Ren and Nora turned their heads.

"Fearless Leader!" Nora greeted with her mouth full of pancakes.

"Jaune," Ren nodded his head with a smile. "how was your day?"

The blonde chose not to discuss his afternoon of being dragged around Vale by Roman and Neo. He looked as Nora as he said, "It's been a day. But what's this about a gang?"

"Oh yeah! You should've been there! Those bikers had no idea who they were dealing with!" Nora flexed her arms. "I dominated all of them!"

"He fell over and passed out," Ren said.

'_Day's getting better at least._' Jaune thought as he listened to Nora's tale.

"And then I threw them all in the dumpster out back!"

"I wonder how he's doing back there."


End file.
